It is generally known to provide gas turbine engine inlet cases as a single cast metal component, typically of an aluminum/magnesium alloy or another lightweight metal. Assembly of the inlet case with other components is generally done with fasteners.
Although cast inlet cases may allow to achieve acceptable weight and durability, the process of casting typically makes it difficult to precisely manage tolerances on specific dimensions of the cast. Consequently an internal dimension of the air passage formed by the inlet case or throat may vary from unit to unit in engines of a same model. Variations in the throat dimension of the inlet case may adversely affect the engine performance and/or lead to engine performance variations between different units of the same engine model.